Once I had reached TeaNest, I loved the view from there. My guide Srini had promised me about a great trek down the valley.I have documented my trek down as a video. You can watch it below. It had a few highlights
- Get to the Top of a waterfall and see the railway track from above.
- Serenade through tea estates and find a shorter route home
- Pause at a point, where you can see Sim’s rock from a distance
- Walk down to a scenic government school, from which opens a beautiful valley view
- Pause at the ‘Hill Grove’ Railway station. Drink tea and start the trek back down to the Hotel
Cost of Staying
The resort is priced above 12,000 INR onwards on its rooms, and it differs depending on the room type. Browse through their website to book directly
Best Time to Go
There is no best time for a place steeped in the hills, but if you can just before the Europeans come here for their winter season (Dec-February), the resort is flush with the freshness of the onset of the North East Monsoon(Oct-Nov) and the Pre monsoon showers (June-September)
Getting There
From Chennai– You could take the train 12671 to Mettupalayam via Coimbatore and then take a taxi from there to the resort. If you are flying down, take a taxi from the Peelamedu airport in Coimbatore.
From Bangalore-The best way is to drive, through Mysore and Gudalur into Ooty, Coonor and then Kurumbadi, but if you dont prefer the hills, you can drive through Salem, Erode, Avinashi keeping the ghat roads to a minimum of 14 kilometres. For those flying or taking a train, you need to come to Coimbatore to then take a taxi.
From anywhere else in India-Fly in to Coimbatore and take a taxi/train to Mettupalayam
To get to Kurumba Village, its best you travel on your own in your vehicle. Whether you travel on your own or take a taxi for your rides, it should be another 6000-7000 Rs on your driving costs at the minimum.
If ever you wish to be adventurous, the way to do that is to take the train at Mettupalayam and get down at HillGrove, and trek down into the Kurunji flower areas, cross a little waterfall hoping you dont slip, and you will find yourself in 20 minutes at the resort. I dropped my S7 Edge into the waterfall, but thankfully my phone can remain in water undisturbed.
The resort has only BSNL signals, so if you have anything else, it makes sense to call the resort from Mettupalayam/Coonor for directions, as there is no easy signboard to spot on your left, where you need to make a V shaped turn down the valley. If you are not sure how to drive down or drive up a hill, it helps if you can drive in 1st gear or get a driver who is at ease with driving in the hilly regions.